Padlock Shim question...

[plot]

well couldnt you repair a shim after it bends? i dont have any experience with them so i have no idea if it would work, but wouldnt you be able to take a pair of needle-nose pliers and bend em back to shape, them temper them with a torch or something and a cup of ice water? im considering buying some shims at the moment and i think i might try it out, but that might be a while and someone who already has a number of shims could try it out and post the results if the wanted to.

i have no experience with shims, but i read somewhere else on these boards that if just the tip crinkles (which i'm guessing is the only part that would bend), then you can just carefully snip the end off and use it again... as a shorter/skinnier shim. wouldn't last forever, but with this method you could get a few extra uses out of a shim.

[deek]

Yeah.!
Just opened a lock using a shim I made.
The coke can wasn't working so I used the metal from a disk.
I'm suprised at how easy it worked, i just pushed it straight down and it popped open.
Thanks for the info.

[locknut]

be gentel man if you are bending them you are beeing too brutal . have a look at what your doing and then dont do it like that again ! dont go directly for the locking pin (spring loaded only by the way) put the tip of the shim on the pin and then slide it to one side of it and then drag it back towards the ceter of the pin whie applying downward pressure if you put the tip of the shim below the locking pin the shackel will suport the load on the shim and dont force it move around a bit ease it in YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN
you will find that more often that not a padlock that has ball bearings is a key retaining padlock and the idea of that is you must lock it again to get your keys back